A perfect first date
Asking for that first date is one thing; making it turn out great is something else again. You want to get to know each other better, have fun, fan the flames, and—if all goes well—clinch a second date.
No problem. All you need is an entertaining activity that stimulates all those good-buzz brain chemicals (real science: norepinephrine and serotonin excite us, dopamine makes us feel happy), yet enables plenty of interaction and face-to-face contact.
Come on, you know what it is.
Gotta dance! No, no, not at the latest club/disco/hot spot, where it's too loud, too dark, too crowded, and way too sweaty. (A trip to the zoo would be a big step up.) You've got to find the nearest milonga. You've got to tango.
Tango has got to be the hottest—and coolest—dance to capture hearts, literally around the world. Since its first steps in Argentina in the late nineteenth century, tango has caught on in more than 30 countries and on every continent (well, except maybe Antarctica). Milongas—tango dance parties—are everywhere. And they just may be the perfect date.
It takes two to tango. Really. If you're not familiar with it, you might think the tango is just another formal, old-fashioned ballroom dance, with the guy leading the girl around the floor. You'd be wrong. Tango is mostly spontaneous and improvised.
Sure, there are a few basic rules.
If you don't know how to tango, you can easily find a beginner lesson to get your date started out on the right foot. Then enjoy the party! There may be wine and munchies. There certainly will be a crowd of couples having a fantastic time—count on it. They love what they're doing. Even if you think you hoof it like a heffalump (highly unlikely), it's easy to have fun when everybody around you is having a blast.
But let's reconsider that heffalump notion. Get over it. People stuck in wheelchairs dance, with each other and with non-disabled partners, and they do it well enough for international competition. If you can move, you can dance. Once you know a basic step or two, you're good to go. You only need to remember two things. (1) Do not—EVER—watch your feet. Look at your partner. (2) Stop thinking about yourself and your moves and the impression you're making. Look at your partner!
You know you're scoring points.
What can you do for an encore? Picture this scene from the movie Addams Family Values (1993). Elegant night spot, candlelight, soft music; couples murmur quietly over cloth-covered tables. But when Gomez and Morticia (stars Raul Julia and Angelica Huston) take over the dance floor with their beloved tango, the sheer, sultry sensuality of it pops the corks on every champagne bottle in the place.
Give you any ideas?
More science: we look for mates who can dance. Apparently it's hardwired into our brains—something about reproductive superiority. So whether your date thinks about it or not, you're dancing your way closer to that second date. But after that, it's between you, your partner, and the music. While one partner invites and suggests, the other responds and embellishes. Once you get the feel of it, tango aficionados say, it's like a love affair on the dance floor, the "perpendicular expression of a horizontal desire."
You just need a fresh take on it. This date has it all: Heart-stopping action. Classic, time-tested romance. And physical contact that's not only acceptable, but expected. Got it?